Campus News

Cartwright named SUNY provost, executive vice chancellor

By JOHN DELLACONTRADA

Alexander N. Cartwright, vice president for research and
economic development, has been appointed provost and executive vice
chancellor of SUNY by the SUNY Board of Trustees and Chancellor
Nancy L. Zimpher.

Cartwright, who also serves as professor of electrical
engineering and adjunct professor of physics, has been a UB faculty
member since 1995.

His appointment, announced
today by SUNY, is effective on or about Sept. 18. As SUNY
provost and executive vice president, he will coordinate the
system’s vast academic enterprise in close collaboration with
SUNY’s 64 college and university campuses.

Alexander Cartwright

President Satish K. Tripathi congratulated Cartwright on his new
position and commended him for his tremendous contributions and
dedication to the university. UB’s research endeavors
are well positioned for continued success because of
Cartwright’s innovative leadership, Tripathi said.

“I am delighted to see Alex receive this well-deserved
recognition and I know I am joined by all of his colleagues and
friends throughout the university and community in expressing my
deep appreciation for all that he has achieved and contributed over
the past several years,” he said.

“As vice president for research and economic development,
he has lifted the entire UB research enterprise to new heights of
excellence and, importantly, has worked to more closely integrate
our research mission into our undergraduate education mission.

“At the same time, Alex has built valuable linkages with
the university’s partners in science, business, government
and industry, as well as across the global scholarly community.
It’s certainly no easy task to bid farewell to such a deeply
valued university citizen and integral member of our senior
leadership team. But the good news for all of us is that
Alex’s extraordinary perspective, vision and energy will now
be extended across the SUNY system as a whole. I very much look
forward to our continued work together as he takes on this vital
leadership role.”

Provost Charles F. Zukoski also noted Cartwright’s success
in leading the university’s major research initiatives and in
encouraging cross-disciplinary collaboration throughout the
university.

“Alex Cartwright is a wonderful colleague, and because of
his leadership we have been tremendously successful in integrating
UB’s research mission with the broader activities of the
university and with our region’s economic development
efforts,” Zukoski said.

“His leadership has greatly increased the impact of
our scholarship regionally, nationally and globally. From shaping
major campus research and academic initiatives like RENEW and the
Communities of Excellence to expanding entrepreneurship
opportunities for our students, faculty and community, he has built
significant momentum across the research enterprise and has
positioned the university strongly in garnering highly competitive
grants.

“As a university community, we are grateful for his many
contributions and wish him continued success as he brings his
academic vision and leadership to bear system-wide.”

Cartwright’s tenure at UB is notable for his many
accomplishments as a researcher, teacher, department chair and
administrator. As vice president, Cartwright refocused UB’s
research infrastructure to provide greater support to faculty and
strengthened the connections between research, education, knowledge
transfer and economic development. His efforts were instrumental in
launching UB’s Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics
in 2012 and in securing $47.5 million in funding for UB’s
leadership role in the Genomic Medicine Network launched this year
by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo.

Cartwright’s efforts also have positioned UB to continue
the successful implementation of Cuomo’s START-UP NY program,
with 16 companies partnering with the university to pursue new
business opportunities and creating more than 800 new jobs in the
region.

As a faculty member, he served as chair of the Department of
Electrical Engineering and inaugural chair of the Department of
Biomedical Engineering. He is a recipient of the Chancellor’s
Award for Excellence in Teaching and earned a National Science
Foundation CAREER Award and an Office of Naval Research Young
Investigator Award.

An internationally prominent researcher, Cartwright is a fellow
of SPIE – The International Society for Optical Engineering,
a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers (IEEE) and a member of the American Society for
Engineering Education (ASEE).

His interest in combining research and education is demonstrated
by his serving as principal investigator on the NSF IGERT
(Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship) program
in Biophotonics, as co-PI on two undergraduate education grants
and, more recently, as a co-PI on a prestigious NSF Math and
Science Partnership Award to UB and the Buffalo Public Schools.

“This new chapter in my career is a natural progression,
as my interests have broadened to include academic strategic
planning in the pursuit of academic excellence and the impact of
our scholarly and creative activities on the community,”
Cartwright said.

“SUNY is an incredible academic institution with
tremendous diversity. I am looking forward to applying on a larger
scale some of what we accomplished together at UB for the benefit
of the entire system and all of New York State.”

Tripathi said the university anticipates naming an interim vice
president for research and economic development by the end of
August.